POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE EFFECTS OF COLONIALISM IN GHANA

ADAPTED FROM: https://is.mendelu.cz/eknihovna/opory/zobraz_cast.pl?cast=61463

Colonialism impacted the African continent socially, politically and economically both positively and negatively. Some of the positive social, economic and political impacts included the introduction of Christianity which brought about more religious mission opportunities. Most of the missionaries introduced education in Africa by establishing mission schools to educate the local people and helped them to learn more about their land and culture. The Europeans defended the Africans against their enemies or gave them weapons to enable them defend themselves whenever they were attacked by their enemies and this made some of the Africans feel safer. The Europeans brought new technology to Africa; they were provided with tools for farming and introduced new crops like maize and manioc from the New World. They built more infrastructures like medical facilities, transport and communication network, schools and established plantations for the growing of cash crops like cocoa, coffee, tea, rubber and cotton. Many Africans learned the languages of their colonial masters like English, French and Portuguese which has given them more advantage to be able to communicate in the present globalised world without any difficulties. Colonialism also made the world aware of Africa’s rich culture although they adopted some the European culture, its abundance in natural and mineral resources and introducing the countries to trade on the international markets. New goods including household goods were introduced to Africa. More African jobs were created and some of the people learnt new trade making especially the tribal groups that sided with Europeans richer. More stronger and better institutions were established to govern the people which they exist in most of the countries till today.

Some of the negative effects are that the Africans were taken as slaves to the new world and forced to work on the plantations without pay. On the African continent the Europeans seized land from the Africans to establish plantations for the growing of cash crops and forced the people to work on these plantations for a meagre. The African culture was diluted, traditions were taken away and their ways of life were destroyed. The African tradition religion was also destroyed due to the introduction of Christianity, they forced the people to learn their language, taught them how to eat European food and dress like Europeans abandoning their own traditional way of eating habits and dressing and the spread of virulent diseases. Families were torn apart due to partition of Africa which created new boundaries leading to present conflicts and the slave trade which millions of people away from their families and homelands. The Europeans took away most of their resources especially gold, diamonds, ivory and agricultural primary products. This never gave the Africans the opportunity to learn how to use their own resources for development. Lastly the Africans occupied only the inferior positions of the colonial administration and never had a say in the government of their own countries. Those employed by the colonial administration felt proud and more superior to the others and it eventually led to social inequality in the colonies.